Mail-box.



H. H. WFSTPHALN.l

MAIL BOX.

APPLICATION man SEPT. 23. 1915.

. speaking is inaccessible'from the vide means operable from the inside tion illustrated HERMAN H. WESTPHALN, 0F HINSDALE, ILLINOIS,

ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO'ASA S.

BACON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

MAIL-BOX.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept.4 26, 1916.

Application led September 23, 1915. Serial No. 52,137.

To all whom t may concem:

Be it known that I, PHALN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hinsdale, in the county of Du- 'page and State of Illinois, havev invented n certain new and useful Improvement in eig-Boxes, of which the following is a 'specication l y invention relates to mail boxes, more particularly for use in residences and in other places where mail is delivered ter carrier. l i j The purposel of my invention is to obtain a receptacle into which the letter carrier mayI delivermail from the .outside of the residence, and the occupant of such residence yor oiice may, fromthe inside, determine whether the box contains any mail, and if so, remove the contents without going to the outside of the building. In connection with this purpose itis my object to obtain a receptacle which, practically outside of the building and which will hide the contents from a person'outside of the-building. lAnother object of my invention is to piiroor holding an outgoing letter in position where it may be withdrawn by the letter carrier and yet be held in a position where it will not interfere with the linsertion of mail in case they carrier does not collect the mail.

I accomplishV my objects by the construcln the accompanying draw- 1n s in. whichigure 1 is a perspective of a receptacle embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a central vertical section of the box showing it in position in a wall. Fig. 3 is a plan section taken just below the roof of the box.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the form selected to illustrate the in-A wa-ll 5. In the design shown the receptacle is formed of sheet metal with flanges 6, 6 at the backi HERMAN H. WEsT- by let- COmmOIl and form a finishing frameto hide the rough edges where the wall is cut away to receive the receptacle.

At the outside or front the box is provided with ya receiving spout 12 which is located at the upper end of the box, the

l l 14 are designed to lle adjacent to the exterior surface of the wall and form a finishing plate therefor. By 4preference the plate 14 is extended upward to form a card holder or name plate holder. This may be of any desired pattern.

Mounted within the box is a letter holder which consists in the present design of a 15 in the form of a bow, the

side walls 3, 4, they are rigidly fastened in any suitable manner. The front ofthe bow is located preferably in or near the duct or spout I12 as illustrated, and presses upward.

In mounting the box it will be placed in the wall in the manner described, with the face plates 7y and "14 adjacent to the inner and outer wall surfaces respectively.' The box will thus be accessible to the mail carrier from the outside and to the occupant from the inside. On account of the location and construction' of the receiving spout, when the carrier has deposited a letter, it will drop to the bottom of the box and remain out of sight and out of reach of any body on the outside of the building. At th however, the contents are at all times visible from the inside of the building and 'may be removed at any time at the convenience of the occupant. the occupant wishes to send a letter (indicated by the lines 16 in Fig. 2), he inserts it through the door 8, 9 and over the top of the letter holder 15 which automatically engages the letter and holds it in contact with the under side of the roof 1. The occupant takes care that the end of the letter projects through the spout so that the outer end may be grasped by the carrier andbe by him withdrawn from the As the holder keeps the letter adjacent to theroof, it leaves the duct free to receive letters, for it will be understood that the letter carrier doesv not always collect e same' time,

mail and furthermore the mail box may be used by visitors or others for inserting Visiting cards, etc. Consequently in my con-rv struction the outgoing letters do notobstruct the receiving opening in any way and the shape of the letter holder is such as to permit letters to be freely introduced from the outside. l

lt will be understood, of course that the thickness of the box from front to rear may be varied to suit occasions. For example, a box of my general design may be ern.- ployed in an o'llce building where the partitions are thinner.

vWhat l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Pater/it, iszl. A inail boxhaving a receiving slot in the front near the top and a letter holder near the slot for holding a letter in a position where it will project out through the slot at one edge of the slot whereby it may be grasped by the mail collector and yet not obstruct the slot to any appreciable extent.

2. A mail box having a receiving slot in the front near the top and an opening in the back and a resilient letter holder near the slot pressing toward the top of the box forv yieldingly holding a letter in a position where it will extend out through the slot at the upper edge thereof, said letter holder being open at the back for permitting said letter to be inserted from the back opening meente ci thebox and move in the saine general direction that the letter will take in. being vwithdrawn from said slot by the mail collector.

3,. e mail box having openings on two dilerent sides, one opening being large :tor the ready removal oi .mail and the other one small and located near the top of the box to prevent removal of the contents supported upon the floor of the box, and a letter holder adjacent to the smaller opening, said holder being adapted to hold approximately parallel to the position a letter will normally assume in entering the box through the smaller opening.

4. A mail box having 4a receiving slot at one side, an opening at the opposite side for the removal of mail, and a spring wire bow Jfastened at its ends tothe sides ot the box and extending from the ends toward ythe central upper part of the box vtor pressing a letter against the roof of the box while said letter is partially within the box. and in part projects through said slot, the bow being opposite to and inside of said slot and the ends being somewhat lower than the root of the box to thereby permit the owner to slip an outgoing letter into the holder from the back of the box.

ln witness whereof, l have hereunto subscribed rny naine.

HERMAN ll. WESTHALN.

a letter 1 

